Some recommendations
Skim style
Diamond CL: The tried and tested Diamond board at a lower cost. A great all-round board that you can keep improving on. Available in 54" and 57" size for riders 5'4" - 6'4" and up to 225lbs. Or go for the Premium Diamond.
Hammerhead: We're lucky to get some limited edition Hammerheads and, truly, once they're gone they're gone! This square nose and square tail design makes riding revert easier - but even if you're not yet at that level you'll enjoy the Hammerhead's performance and control. Available in 50", 53" and 55" for riders 5' - 6'4" and up to 225lbs. This is the board Brian is looking forward to riding in 2017!
Diamond Luv: Come on ladies, show the guys how it's done! The Diamond shape in a smaller and eye-catching package for smaller riders (male or female). Available in 48" and 52" for riders 4'8" - 5'11" and up to 165 lbs, Anna is looking forward to riding the 48" next season!
Hypsta: Stunning looking board for intermediate to advanced riders. This is the board to step up your spinning skills! In 50" and 54" for riders 5'4" - 6'5" and up to 250 lbs
Trident: One for the bigger guys. A 60" board for folks 5'7" to 6'5" weighing up to and over 250lbs. This board will carry you from beginner to advanced level.
XB: From the Performance range, this stable, fast board gives you Model X performance on a budget. In 58" for riders 5'8" - 6'5" and up to 250lbs
Matrix: Super lightweight board in 48", 51", 53" and 56" this is a very responsive, trick friendly design. Models suitable for riders 4'8" - 6'4" and up to 225lbs
Super Fish: A Performance range board that accommodates riders 4'9" to 6' and up to 165lbs so a great sharing board. Fast, fun and forgiving so ideal for improving your skills.
Prop: A Phase 5 original and still going strong. A good all-round board on a Performance range budget. An ideal first board or shared board that will see you from beginner through to advanced riding. For riders 5'4" - 6'2" and up to 190lbs. Drew Danielo won his first 2 wakesurf world championships on this board.
Oogle: Ultra stable board ideal for beginners and improvers with a generous front rocker to reduce nose-diving. Experienced riders will still find it lively and fun. Another good shared or first board. For riders 5'8" - 6'5" and up to 210 lbs (though it's also good for getting up smaller and lighter beginners).
Surf style
If you're surfing behind a boat with limited wave then consider one of these:
Race: We expect this to be a popular board for 2017. Designed to be nimble and with a narrower nose to charge harder and faster without digging in. Available in 50.5", 53.5" and 56.5" to accommodate riders 5' to 6'4" and up to 215lbs.
Fang: Brand new for 2017 and designed to give you more controlled turns - we expect this to be a great board for progressing your skills. In 52" and 57" to cater for riders 5'3" - 6'4" and up to 250lbs
Rio: A quad fin board with plenty of gas for the bigger rider who wants to cruise the waves whilst designed to be easy for smaller riders to turn and control. In 50", 54" and 58" to accommodate riders 5'4" - 6'5" and up to 250lbs
Wire: Want to perfect your revert riding on a surf style board? This is the one! A good choice for all levels of rider and its design allows bigger riders to ride a smaller board. In 53", 57" and 60" for riders 5'3" - 6'5" and up to 260 lbs
Finding the right board
There's a huge choice of boards available these days - so how to pick the right board for you?
The most common considerations are:
- Skim or surf style
- Skill level
- Your height & weight
- Budget
Whether you've been learning on a shared board and are ready to buy your first board, want to upgrade to the next leve or are a seasoned surfer, here are few pointers to help you pinpoint the right Phase 5 board for you.
Style
Phase 5 boards come in Skim style and Surf style - with hybrid boards like the Fireball that offer a surf/skim fin set of twin or quad fins. Each board has a description of its type and its fin set up. So what's the difference?
Surf style boards are closer to ocean surfing. The boards tend to be bigger both in size and volume and have twin (balance between speed and manouevrability) or quad fins (increased control). The shape, position and larger size of surf style fins provide greater drive and more powerful turns but are more challenging to spin. The taller the fin the more stable and controllable the board but the less quickly manoeuvrable.
Skim style boards tend to be shorter and flatter and designed for tricks. They may come with single (least drag), twin (more drive) or tri-fin (most stable).
Skim riders tend to enjoy longer waves with plenty of pocket for tricks whilst surf riders tend to enjoy a steeper wave (of course at this stage we'll mention just how versatile the Centurion Ri range is at quickly adjusting to all your riders!)
Skill level
We've tried to give an indication of skill range or specific board characteristics.
But often it's a case of finding a board that suits you. In our opinon, once you're confident throwing in the line and carving the wave you will soon outgrow a club board and can grow into a more advanced board. Many of the Phase5 boards can span a wide skill range.
Beginners tend to fare better on surf style boards as these are floatier and have more drive and control. Advanced skim boards can be harder for beginners as they tend to be less floaty and are harder to control.
Another consideration here is the type of boat you're riding behind - if your boat doesn't have a big wave or much push then consider going for a slightly bigger board (in general, the smaller the wave the bigger the board you need, the bigger the wave the more board choice you have).
Height and weight
Yes this does make a difference! Some boards come in a number of different sizes to accommodate different size riders, some support a wide height / weight range and some are specifically built for a purpose - e.g. the Diamond Luv for smaller riders (and popular with the ladies), the Scamp for the kids and the Trident for the big guys.
Look for the height and weight charts with each board description.
Budget
Let's face it. We get what we pay for and quality boards are not cheap - but they do perform and they do last.
Phase 5 build all their boards in the USA to a high quality. For Skim style boards there are two options - the Premium range and the Performance range. The difference is in the construction materials. The Premium boards are generally built from carbon fibre (stiff, lighweight, strong) or GatorSkin (a very strong carbon / aramid glass which makes for a very stiff, fast board). The Performance range is designed to meet a more demanding budget. They are generally made from E-Glass (the most commonly used glass in the surfboard industry) and composolite construction (a very durable molded construction process).
If you're looking for Performance on a budget - these are the boards to check out:
Scamp, Fish, Super Fish, Prop, Oogle, Diamond CL (same shape as the Premium Diamond) and the XB (based on the Premium Model X)
If you want more advice then please get in touch - we have 2017 stock due in and are always happy to help you find the right board for you.
